The Right Baby Car Seat
You must be thinking I am nuts, no? Well you would not believe how important having the right baby car seat for your little bundle of joy is. It could save the little bugger from some serious injury and you from a heart attack.
Therefore when you have a new baby, it is important to have the right baby car seat. It needs to be installed correctly in order to protect your baby in the event of a car accident. Most hospitals won’t discharge a mom and new baby until they see the car seat. Many kinds of infant car seats exist.
I have found that the easiest kind to use is the kind that has a base that gets buckled securely into the car, and the seat itself can be lifted off and carried around by the handle. This is very convenient because the baby can be carried to and from the house or wherever one is going while strapped into the seat...
Do remember though these infant seats usually will only be safe for transporting babies facing backward, until the age of one year. When the baby is 18 pounds, and at least one year old, it is time for a forward-facing baby car seat.
Also, by the time the baby is that old, and weighs 18 pounds, he will be too heavy to lug around that way! You will want to get the baby out of the baby car seat, and carry him, or he may even be walking by then!
Another kind of baby car seat is called a convertible car seat. Many of these baby car seats can be placed in the backward-facing position for when babies grow out of their infant seats, but are not yet old enough, or at a heavy enough weight to sit facing forward. Then, the convertible baby car seat can be turned to face forward, and will seat the baby until the baby is 40 pounds or more. These have a 5-point harness that is buckled at the bottom and the chest.
Of course once the baby reaches 40 pounds, he will move to a booster seat. This seat is a small base that keeps the child secure, while allowing him to use the regular seat belt. The child can sit in this seat until he weighs 80 pounds!
Regardless of what kind of baby car seat or booster you are using, the place for babies and children under 12 years of age is always in the back seat of the car. The center of the back is the safest place to sit. Airbags in the front can injure a small child, so never seat a child under the age of 12 in the front seat.
There you have it, this is serious stuff and you need to take extra precaution and read up as much as you can on car seats before investing in one.
Resources
Car Seat Instructions - Instructions for installing child safety seats in cars are written in language too difficult for many adults to understand, researchers say...
Child Car Seats - Provides advice on purchasing, fitting and using child car restraints, along with links to manufacturers, retailers and other relevant organisations.
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